Tuesday, March 13, 2018

Red spongeOphlitaspongia pennataThe red sponge is a beautifully coral-red form with a velvety surface. De Laubenfels (1932) remarked that it occurs clear up to the half-tide mark (higher up than any other sponge), especially on vertical rocks under pendant seaweed, hence shaded from direct sunlight. Ophlitaspongia pennata is recorded from Vancouver Island to near Puertocitos, Baja California. The red sponge can be found on the undersurfaces of many of the larger rocks that are in the intertidal zone. Sponges are filter feeders and belong to the Phylum Porifera. Rostanga pulchra, the red nudibranch, feeds on the red sponge. (Race Rocks Taxonomy)

Wash. Environmental Coalition Says Progress Made, Despite Failure Of Key Climate Policies
Environmental groups had high hopes going into the special legislative session that ended Thursday in Olympia. But even with Democratic majorities in both chambers of the legislature, passage of critical climate policies did not happen. The push to put a price on carbon pollution is now up to voters. Gov. Jay Inslee’s proposal narrowly failed. It would have made Washington the first state with a carbon tax, pushing the issue into the national spotlight. Backers filed an initiative the day after its demise and say they will start collecting signatures early next month. Hopes were high for another climate policy that some said Inslee wanted as a consolation prize – the Clean Energy Standard –which would have forced utilities to transition to 100 percent fossil-free electricity by 2045, including a complete phase out of coal by 2030. That also failed. Bellamy Pailthorp reports. (KNKX)

Navy wants to use more Washington state parks for stealth SEAL training
The Navy wants to step up special-operations training at state parks along Western Washington coastlines, releasing a proposal that would more than quintuple the number of sites. The Navy currently has a permit to conduct exercises at five state parks. The preferred option in a planning document calls for the possible use of 29 parks ranging from Cape Disappointment at the state’s southwest tip to Deception Pass in northwest Washington. In addition to the parks, the Navy is considering private lands as well as other public sites such as the Port of Anacortes, a Tacoma wastewater plant and a closed prison on McNeil Island. This is part of a broader push in recent years by the Navy and Army to increase the scope of training activities in Washington, an effort that has stirred criticism in a state with a tradition of environmental and citizen activism. Hal Bernton reports. (Seattle Times)

B.C. recruits noted constitutional lawyer for court action over Trans Mountain expansion
A high-profile constitutional lawyer will represent British Columbia in an upcoming court action over Kinder Morgan's Trans Mountain pipeline expansion. The province announced Monday that Joseph Arvay has been appointed external counsel for B.C. in a reference case that could establish whether or not B.C. can restrict bitumen transported through the province. A reference case is where the court is asked to weigh in on a particular legal matter, often when the constitution or division of powers between the federal and provincial governments is involved. Liam Britten reports. (CBC)

16,000 people sign petition urging province to bring BC Ferries under government control
People who live in ferry-dependent communities on the B.C. coast are calling on the province to bring BC Ferries into the Ministry of Transportation. A petition with more than 16,000 signatures was delivered to legislature on Monday by Jim Abram, a Strathcona Regional District director and longtime advocate for B.C. ferry users. Prices spiked and routes were cut back after the previous Liberal government turned BC Ferries from a Crown corporation into an independent commercial organization in 2003, he said. Abrams is calling for BC Ferries to be brought back under government control rather than returned to a Crown corporation…. Since forming government, the NDP has moved ahead with a campaign promise to freeze fares on major routes, reduce fares on minor routes by 15 per cent, and bring back a senior's discount. It's also conducting a promised review of BC Ferries that will seek to identify improvements that can be made to the existing operations — but that review is not considering governance of the ferry system. Megan Thomas reports. (CBC)

There's still hope for liquefied natural gas on the West Coast
The once sky-high aspirations to develop a liquefied natural gas (LNG) industry on Canada's West Coast have crashed to the ground, but experts say the window of opportunity has yet to close as demand for the resource continues to rise around the globe. After several project delays and cancellations, the LNG industry has struggled to take off in British Columbia. Meanwhile, the sector is blossoming in the United States as natural gas pipelines and LNG facilities are constructed. Kyle Bakx reports. (CBC)

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